Ben Sanderson: "England selectors would rather go to Lord's than watch Northants"

NICK HOWSON: After five years out of professional cricket, the 31-year-old is enjoying the sport more than ever. And the results speak for themselves.

• Northants sign Kerrigan on two-year deal
• Thurston shows way for youngsters in shortened summer

It doesn't require powers of deduction to rival Sherlock Holmes to establish the secret behind the success of Ben Sanderson. Sure, the 31-year-old has an abundance of talent and ability - you have to be devilishly accurate to take wickets in England bowling 82mph - but there is something much deeper which has provided the foundations to support Sanderson's rise.

As a child, Sanderson was taught that everything must be earned. His father, a labourer by trade, was keen that he worked from an early age, drilling down the idea that nothing will be given to you in life. "From an early age I was always helping my dad out, just little ceiling jobs," he told The Cricketer. "I've always enjoyed working from a young age. It is very useful to have."

After doing the hard yards, in 2008 he made his first-class debut for Yorkshire and suddenly all the hours working on-site seemed to have been worth it. But after 16 outings across all formats in four seasons, he was dumped by the Headingley club in 2011. Suddenly, Sanderson had to start all over again.

He was back at the daily grind. The working day began at 5:30 am. Lunches and teas at Lord's were a distant memory. Meanwhile, a now part-time cricket career took him to Nantwich, Wormsley, Bodicote, and Shifnal playing for Shropshire, Rotherham Town, Unicorns, and Worcestershire and Glamorgan Second XIs.

And yet, Sanderson doesn't speak about these experiences with any regret. On the contrary, they were the making of him. The moments he appreciated cricket was just a game. Despite the seven-day toil which would include exhausting days both on-site and at the end of his run-up, he fell back in love with the sport and realised what was important again. Happiness.

"At the time I got released it was pretty miserable," he said. "I wasn't enjoying my cricket and I had to get away from it. Having a year playing club cricket with my mates helped because I started enjoying it again.

"If you find somewhere you enjoy, then go there instead of somewhere where you won't as much. There was a period when I thought I was done with professional cricket and I didn't think it was for me. Luckily I found clubs that suited me and people around me that suited me.

^{Ben Sanderson is amongst them again this season}

"I had a boss who loved cricket so he would give me all the time off that I wanted to play. I'd work for three days, play cricket for the rest of the week, then back to work. 

"The majority of the work was at schools. Building walls, working on classroom ceilings, manual stuff which was quite demanding really. It kept me fit in the long run. Carrying big plasterboards around and it probably helped me."

Northamptonshire offered him a route back into first-class cricket in 2015. That opening season saw him combine his working responsibilities with his brief appearances for the county. But since returning to professional cricket on a full-time basis, only Jamie Porter and Simon Harmer have taken more English domestic first-class wickets. His 231 scalps have come at a remarkable 18.69 and there is no sign that this inspired run of form is going to come to an end. It just isn't in his nature to relent.

"It has probably helped my bowling, that working mentality," he explained. "Never stop trying your hardest and keep running in. A lot of people go through the day-to-day grind, Monday-Friday and I have used that mentality in cricket. No matter how flat the pitch is you've got to get up, hit the right areas, and just plough on."

With one of the most enviable records in red-ball domestic cricket in England - he has more wickets in the form since the start of 2016 than Tim Murtagh, Darren Stevens, Chris Rushworth, and Jeetan Patel - it begs the question of why England have never come calling. Not even the Lions. 

England have only given two Test outings to players from Northamptonshire this century. Monty Panesar and Ben Duckett. Others to have played for Northants have gone on to claim a Test cap, but only before or after spells at Wantage Road. Usman Afzaal and Graeme Swann, for example.

The England scouting system is more sophisticated than ever. Every ball bowled in domestic cricket is available at the click of a button. Each poor shot, dropped catch or brilliant run-out hits Twitter within seconds. And with Mo Bobat in place as performance director, players are being identified earlier than before. It should ensure that no-one slips through the net.

Why, therefore, has a player with a record to rival any bowler on the domestic scene been overlooked for so long?

Ben Sanderson doing the business with the ball again!

His 5-for helps @NorthantsCCC bowl Somerset out for 166 👀

All 🔟 wickets: https://t.co/0L1784SGZ8#BobWillisTrophy pic.twitter.com/yJeoHDVFmi

— County Championship (@CountyChamp) August 8, 2020

"I don't mean to sound like small clubs, big clubs, but it does feel a little bit like that," he said. "They'd rather go to Lord's than watch Northants for four days. 

"It is something you hear a lot of from young lads: 'I'm never going to play Test cricket if I'm at Northants.' The feeling is you've got a better chance if you go somewhere like Notts, where Peter Moores is there and has ties with England. Just like Surrey with Alec Stewart.

"He is always on about county cricket and he throws a few names out there and they get a bit more exposure. I don't know if it is England who have put feelers out there and tell players to leave smaller counties and join bigger ones, using that as a tool.

"Players probably are aware of it. It can play a big part when you're coming to leaving your county. It is a tough decision and if people are saying that to you then it is hard not to listen when you've got aspirations of playing for England."

He added: "I don't really think about it [England] until people ask me really. It is not something I've thought about. I just keep going back to Northants. They gave me the opportunity to get back into county cricket so I just turn up and enjoy myself there. If anything did come of it then I'd be delighted but I'm just doing what I'm doing at the minute."

In an era when England are focusing on pace in their bowling attack with one eye on the 2021-22 Ashes - the selection of Ollie Robinson and Sam Curran are a slight exception - Sanderson accepts his lack of extreme pace has always been held against him.

"In Test match cricket you've got to have some pace about you," stated Sanderson. "They do look at pace more when you go abroad, especially when they're breeding them to bowl well in England too. 

"It is a shame but there are a lot of people who have missed out on England chances because they've not been deemed quick enough - but that isn't to say they wouldn't have been good Test match bowlers in England. There is scope to looking to select your best team in England in these conditions. I just turn up for Northants, bowl a few out, and have a cup of tea afterward." 

^{A mentoring role has already begun for the Northants seamer}

A fresh competition - not County Championship Division One as previously planned following last season's promotion -, an alternative start date and a new structure and yet Sanderson has not eased up at the beginning of the Bob Willis Trophy. His 11 wickets in two completed matches means he is up there with the usual suspects of Harmer, Murtagh and Porter.

Frustratingly, his early-season heroics have not yet inspired a victory. His match-figures of 9-89, which included his maiden five-for of the campaign, was not enough to beat Somerset last time out. Like any great professional, personal successes are rather hollow against the backdrop of a defeat.

"Coming off the field having done well when you've won a four-day game is probably one of the best feelings on the circuit when you've grafted for four days. It is always disappointing when you've done well and lost because it isn't quite the same. I tend to enjoy it later on in the bar but it takes a while to sink in. I'd rather take fewer wickets and win a game."

Not 32 until early January, Sanderson has already taken on a mentoring role at Northants. Without any overseas players in 2020, youngsters are being exposed to regular first-class cricket early than planned. Emilio Gay, Charlie Thurston, and Brandon Glover are among those under Sanderson's wing.

"We have some young guys coming through, like Brandon," he explained. "He bowled quite sharp and in some good areas. You wouldn't really expect him to run in and bowl as consistent. There are some guys who come in and spray it and get wacked everywhere but he took to county cricket like a duck to water.

"The batters have been thrown in at the deep end in the opening two games. Against (Warwickshire and England's) Olly Stone on a pitch that did a little bit in the morning, perfect for seam bowling. But they put up a bit of a fight and it was a good challenge for them.

And do young players need an upbringing to rival his? "You can tell when a younger lad has had no setbacks and comes into the dressing room and how he reacts when it doesn't go his way. It is a lot different from someone who has not had it as easy. You can tell the difference."

For unrivalled coverage of the county season, subscribe to The Cricketer and receive four issues for £15

Subscribe to The Cricketer for exclusive content every day: The inside track on England's Test tour with George Dobell in Pakistan, award-winning analysis, breaking news and interviews and the only place for in-depth county coverage all year round. Plus: An ad-free app experience at your fingertips. Subscribe to thecricketer.com today for just £1.